****************************Act Now to Win Award For Earth Science Teaching

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Earth Science Week 2010 wouldn’t have been such a great succes without Earth science teachers. That’s why last week AGI announced details for its upcoming award competition, the Edward C. Roy, Jr. Award for Excellence in K-8 Earth Science Teaching. Each year, this award recognizes one full-time U.S. teacher from kindergarten to eighth grade for leadership and innovation in Earth science education.

The winner will receive a $2,500 prize and an additional grant of $1,000 to enable the recipient to attend the National Science Teachers Association (NSTA) Annual Conference in San Francisco in March 2011 to accept the award. To be eligible for the 2011 competition, applications must be postmarked by January 5, 2011.

This award is named in honor of Dr. Edward C. Roy, Jr., a past president of AGI, who was a strong and dedicated supporter of Earth science education. The 2011 award ceremony will be hosted by the National Earth Science Teachers Association at the NSTA Conference. To learn more, visit http://www.agiweb.org/education/awards/ed-roy.

****************************Contest Winners to Be Announced Next Month ****************************

AGI thanks the many hundreds of students, educators, and others who entered this year’s Earth Science Week photo, visual arts, and essay contests.

Winners will be announced in November 2010. AGI will contact winners directly and recognize their success both on the Earth Science Week website (http://www.earthsciweeek.org) and in this electronic newsletter.

Imagine chatting with Albert Einstein, building an underwater robot, managing cargo in the space shuttle or watching a science magician. These are just a few of the over 1,500 interactive exhibits and stage shows planned for the first Science & Engineering Festival Expo, October 23-24, 2010, on the National Mall in Washington, D.C.

The expo has something for everyone. Come check out Earth Science Week at Booth 360. Visit the official festival website at http://www.usasciencefestival.org to view all exhibit and stage shows, download a map of the expo grounds, and view the festival calendar.

Want to do geoscientific research on a ship? The U.S. National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) is accepting applications for its Teacher at Sea program’s 2011 field season.

The program aims to give teachers clearer insight into the ocean planet, greater understanding of maritime work and studies, and increased environmental literacy by fostering interdisciplinary research. Since 1990, nearly 600 teachers have gained firsthand experience of science and life at sea by working on research ships. Teachers have enriched their classroom curricula with a depth of understanding made possible by working with those who contribute to the world’s body of scientific knowledge.

The program accepts applications from currently employed, full-time educators in several categories. All necessary travel costs associated with teacher participation in the program are covered, including transportation to and from the ship, lodging, and per diem allowance. Apply by November 20, 2010, at http://teacheratsea.noaa.gov.

The National Park Service, a longtime Earth Science Week partner, wants you to become a Web Ranger! The interactive Web Ranger program helps people of all ages learn about the national parks. For example, enter White Sands National Monument in New Mexico from your desktop and identify animal tracks left in the 275 square miles of gypsum dunes that give the park its name.

"Rock Around the Park," another geoscience activity for Web Rangers, shows how erosion has shaped the landscapes of national parks such as Arches National Park in Utah and Grand Canyon National Park in Arizona. Or you can explore over 220 national parks with fossils, including dinosaur fossils. Learn about what dinosaurs munched on millions of years ago in "Dino Diets."

Find all this and more on the Web Rangers site. Invent a Web Ranger name, create a personalized ranger badge, and start learning about Earth science in the national parks at http://www.nps.gov/webrangers/ today!

Besides to advancing the expertise of ground water professionals, the National Ground Water Association (NGWA), an Earth Science Week partner, is dedicated to furthering ground water awareness and protection. NGWA offers short courses on all aspects of groundwater, several conferences each year, an annual ground water expo, and groundwater webinars.

Check out "Ground Water Adventures," a website providing activities for young people in grades K-3, 4-8, and 9-12. Find fun facts about ground water, quizzes, and other useful information. Also featured are classroom experiments, an online groundwater newsletter for students, pictures, and stories. For more information, visit http://www.groundwateradventurers.org. To learn more about NGWA, see http://www.ngwa.org.

Want to see yourself and your students on the Earth Science Week website? Simply send us photos from your Earth Science Week celebrations and activities (along with any necessary signed permission forms). We’ll post selected images on the Earth Science Week Photo Gallery (http://www.earthsciweek.org/whatsgoingon/gallery/ photos.html).

By submitting a photo, you agree to allow AGI to post the image on the Earth Science Week website, without compensation unless prohibited. All submissions and all rights of ownership in and to the images, including all rights to use, reproduce, publish, modify, edit, and distribute the same will become the exclusive property of AGI and will not be returned. AGI reserves the right to edit, modify, adapt, copyright, publish, use, and reproduce any and all entries without further compensation.

The Association of Environmental and Engineering Geologists (AEG), an AGI member society, not only provides leadership, advocacy, and applied research in environmental and engineering geology - the association also encourages educators to join and make use of its abundant resources.

Resources for members include technical publications, section and chapter meetings, and special educator sessions at the annual meeting. Opportunities for professional geologists to speak to classes are also available to members, as well as resume writing workshops and scholarships for students.

AEG also links to AGI’s K-5 GeoSource online at http://www.aegweb.org/i4a/pages/index.cfm?pageid=3361/. K-5 GeoSource is an online professional development tool for elementary-level teachers who offer instruction on Earth science topics such as weather, fossils, rocks, soil, and water. To find out more about what AEG has to offer or become a member, visit http://www.aegweb.org.

Thanks to the generosity of sponsors who support our efforts, Earth Science Week is able to promote awareness and appreciation of the geosciences among over 40 million people every year. AGI would like to express its appreciation to the many government agencies, nonprofit groups, and corporations that make the program possible.

Earth Science Week couldn’t do its important work without the support of organizations such as the U.S. Geological Survey, National Park Service, AAPG Foundation, U.S. Department of Energy, ExxonMobil, and ESRI. In addition, year after year, Earth Science Week Toolkits are purchased in bulk for distribution to teachers by numerous organizations such as NASA, National Park Service, Kansas Geological Survey, New Mexico Museum of Natural History and Science, and Loudon County Public Schools.

****************************The American Geosciences Institute is a nonprofit federation of 46 geoscientific and professional associations that represents more than 120,000 geologists, geophysicists, and other earth scientists. Founded in 1948, AGI provides information services to geoscientists, serves as a voice of shared interests in the profession, plays a major role in strengthening geoscience education, and strives to increase public awareness of the vital role the geosciences play in society’s use of resources and interaction with the environment. For contact information, please visit http://www.earthsciweek.org/contactus/index.html.